Texas High School Flag Football: Elevating UIL Varsity to Reduce Youth CTE Risk
✨ Coach, Parents & Player Tips
Coach’s Clipboard: Teach your players a simple counter by faking an outside sprint to pull defenders wide, then loop back inside for daylight—bonus points if you dub it the “Penguin Waddle” to keep the laughs (and flags) flying.
Postgame Parents: I know mornings are a sprint, so while you’re flipping pancakes, hand your kiddo a spatula and have them bounce-and-catch it on the countertop—those split-second reflex reps sneak in killer hand–eye speed so they snag passes and swipe flags like little pros.
Players Snap: Kick off each huddle with a two-finger salute and a chest bump. Miss it and you’re running laps—no lone wolves here, we win or lose as a pack.
🔎 Feature Story
🏅 Flag football, tackle and head injuries
An opinion piece in the Houston Chronicle urges Texas high schools to elevate flag football to UIL varsity status and impose strict limits on contact practices, citing studies showing repetitive head impacts can double CTE risk every 2.6 years of play. This shift aims to maintain football’s essential lessons of discipline, teamwork and character while prioritizing youth brain health.
“The research is clear: It’s not just the big hits that matter, but the accumulation of repetitive head impacts over time.”
🌍 Regional Roundup
Louisiana (New Orleans): The New Orleans Saints hosted the NFL’s annual regional flag football tournament on November 1, 2025, at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center and Shine on Airline, featuring girls’ and coed brackets for youth athletes. The event provided a platform for players aged 8U to 17U in girls’ divisions and 8U to 14U in coed divisions, highlighting grassroots growth in the region’s flag football community.
🔗 Read More
California (Ventura County): Westlake High became Ventura County’s first flag football sectional finalist after freshman Annabel O’Keefe returned an overtime interception for a touchdown, lifting the 17-6 team into the CIF-Southern Section Division 2 championship game at El Modena High. The milestone reflects growing participation and competitive success at the high school level in Southern California.
🔗 Read More
⭐ Player Spotlight
Julia Rose – Quarterback, Vestavia Hills. Rose threw for 5,943 yards and 104 touchdowns in the regular season, leading the Rebels to a 24-1 record and a region championship while elevating girls flag football with her competitive spirit.
“She’s a competitor, I mean, she competes. You get a drop ball here and there and she wants to complete every pass and I love that about her. She is working, she’s challenging her teammates and her teammates are challenging her,” said head coach Daniel Davis.
📈 Flag Growth Focus
🔥 Saints Regional Showcase
The New Orleans Saints expanded their grassroots footprint by hosting the 2025 NFL Flag Football regional tournament at Shine on Airline and the Ochsner Sports Performance Center, featuring girls’ brackets from 8U to 17U and coed divisions from 8U to 14U. Held November 1, the event underscores the league’s growing investment in youth infrastructure and year-round competition pathways in Louisiana. This initiative highlights the NFL’s commitment to structured development and increased participation across age groups.
🔗 Read More
⚡ FlagSnap Daily Blitz
Freshman Annabel O’Keefe’s dramatic overtime pick‐6 propelled Westlake into its first CIF-Southern Section Division 2 title game as Ventura County’s inaugural flag football sectional finalist.
👉 Read Full Article
Westlake will face Corona del Mar in the Division 2 championship this Saturday at El Modena High in Orange following O’Keefe’s late heroics.
👉 Read Full Article
Corona del Mar downed Newbury Park 27-18 in the Division 2 semifinals, halting Newbury Park’s season-long surge with a solid defensive showing.
👉 Read Full Article
Riverside Poly prevailed 12-7 over Royal in the Division 4 semifinals, highlighted by Natasha Paloian’s crucial fourth-quarter interception that thwarted multiple red-zone bids.
👉 Read Full Article
🏁 Final Whistle
“Football is like life; it requires perseverance, self-denial, hard work, sacrifice, dedication and respect for authority.”
— Vince Lombardi
